Milosz #2

Here is Seamus Heaney's eulogy and review of the life and work of Csezlav Milosz, which everyone ought to read at some point. I say "life and work" rather than just work, because unlike so many other literary luminaries, like Wallace Stevens or a host of others, Milosz's life was exemplary. No doubt because early on he had something more to face off against than ennui and metaphor.

One of my favorite Milosz poems, "Capri", contains a line in which the poet refers to the importance of heeding "the immense call of the particular". Worth a try, I've thought. Max Weber also wrote about heeding a calling, which now of course seems out-dated. Well, be patient.

I first read a Milosz poem while sitting on a New York City subway, heading downtown. It was posted up on the side of the train car, near the ceiling, sort of sandwiched between ads for laser surgery and legal advice.